Martin O'Neill does not blame referee Mark Halsey for turning down Sunderland’s penalty appeal at Stoke.

Black Cats front man Steven Fletcher saw his goalbound shot strike former Middlesbrough defender Robert Huth on the arm 15 minutes from time, but Halsey waved away his protests.

There was no argument about the contact, but Halsey decided the German centre-back could not get out of the way.

O’Neill has seen a replay of the incident and believes the referee got the call right – although he admits it was hard to take, as the ball was destined for the net.

“I’ve seen it back very briefly,” he said. “The truth is that, on first look, I thought if it had been given against us I might have been none-too-pleased.

“I think he’s tried to keep his arm low – but if it misses him, it’s in the net. That’s the galling thing.

“I think the referee thought he (Huth) was too close to it, and I’m not so sure that that would be the case, but I’m also not sure it was a deliberate handball.”

Goalkeeper Simon Mignolet was the star of the show for Sunderland, as he kept his third clean sheet of the campaign to help his side pick up a point from the goalless encounter at the Britannia Stadium.

But O’Neill admits Sunderland’s inability to convert draws into wins is becoming a major frustration, as the Wearsiders made it six stalemates from their first eight matches.

He said: “It was a difficult game played in difficult conditions, with the wind swirling around and making life a bit difficult. But a point away from home isn’t too bad. We’ve drawn a lot of games this season and at the moment we are just unable to turn one or two of those draws into victories.

“Our goalkeeper has been fantastic for us this year, he made several good saves today and one very, very good one late in the game.”

Skipper Lee Cattermole returned after serving his three-match ban, and O’Neill left Stephane Sessegnon out of the starting line-up.

“Sometimes just leaving someone out for a while makes a difference,” said O’Neill. “When he (Sessegnon) came on, I thought he looked invigorated.”

Sunderland now face Middlesbrough in the fourth round of the Capital One Cup on Tuesday night and O’Neill is preparing to make some changes – although he is still determined to name a strong side.

He said: “We want to stay in the competition and it’s a derby game for us. We might have to make a change or two, but we still want to get through.”